mpally

ESP's are just another form of insurance. Do you have insurance on your house? How often do you use it? I'm fairly certain you would use a 7 yr. 125,000 mile ESP before you use your homeowners insurance. However, I bet you still have homeowners insurance. Please explain the difference.

Ricktwuhk

My mortgage company REQUIRES me to have homeowners insurance. My state REQUIRES me to have auto insurance.

Extended warranties are the highest margin products sold for a reason. If you fear you'll pay more out of your pocket, buy it. I routinely keep my vehicles 10 or more years and it would never have paid off.

Cowpig

if my truck burns to the ground I'm not out 6 figure$ (and the lien holder(s) won't be happy if I don't have the cash in hand to pay off the loan or rebuild to maintain their equity)

auto insurance - isn't just for the value of your truck, it's for the personal injury and who knows how much damage you'll do in a wreck that's your fault (100 mph take out 3 tractor trailers, a ferrari, then launch off an embankment and land in the living room of a house with dozens of injuries = state says you'll have insurance if you want to drive your car on taxpayer roads


but yeah, I'm sure manufacturers offer the extended warranties because they just want to be good to their customers and lose money on average. Just like insurance companies that keep premiums lower than their cost so they lose money but get good karma in return. Makes sense, and sure is nice of them.

my67falcon

No one is saying that they are not making money from selling ESPs. If you don't want it, fine: Others do. Neither of you are wrong if you are happy with you decision. For me, I am almost at the break even point. I'm happy with my choice even if nothing else goes wrong and they make some cash on me. I paid for piece of mind. You, and others, don't see the value in it. That's great. To each their own.

Cowpig

true, but the OP asked

if it's worth it to you, buy it - if you'd rather keep your money don't. The common sense part of it is obvious though, insurance companies gamble and generally win making a profit by offering insurance that never costs them money ... but yes, some people will make claims that are more than what they paid for.

OP: If you think you'll be one of those few customers who needs more than average repairs then buy it. If I had a "near lemon" vehicle in the first 3/36k then I'd probably buy it - but if the first 3 years are average then I wouldn't.

RLXXI

Exactly, the only true argument for not buying it is if one can't afford it and it's a shame because those are the people who will feel the pinch harder than anyone else. Just like spending $1500 on a VCM for IDS, will I make any $$ with it? Probably not but I didn't buy it for that, I bought it for peace of mind. The first and last time I went to the dealer to get my remote start activated left me sitting helpless in the waiting room and that is a feeling I hope to never have again, at least not for something like that.

Same reason I spent an assload of $$ on a pistol to carry, I hope to god I NEVER have to use it but I have peace of mind knowing it's there should I require it.

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Cowpig

well that ends the debate right there - the only true argument has been made

...and nobody who carries a pistol/rifle has EVER been killed or injured despite carrying said pistol/rifle

well done RNL, you are truly a masterdebater

mpally

So are you implying that if the lender or state didn't require either you wouldn't have either?

mpally

ESP, similar to maintenance contracts in different forms, are all forms of insurance. Insurance provides peace of mind and coverage when needed. Clearly most insurance companies, including homeowners and auto insurers, are in business to make a profit. Therefore, the purchasers could lose money. However, that expense provides peace of mind that if your truck has an issue, the ESP should cover it.

Also think of the ESP in this context. I have a 6 year old F150 with 120,000 miles on it that I'm trying to sell. If someone is looking at higher mileage trucks and I have an ESP on mine with coverage left, does that provide peace of mind to the buyer and, potentially, increases the value of my truck albeit maybe a minimal amount. Everything being equal, I assume I would be more comfortable buying a higher mileage truck that has been covered under a manufacturers warranty for the 120,000 as opposed to a truck that has not been covered.

mpally

It would be interesting to see how they calculate the cost of servicing these service contracts. Are using the same cost to the repair the vehicle as they would if the vehicle was not under an ESP? Also, are they using what Ford is selling the ESP for or what certain dealers are sell are selling the ESP for online. $22.50 a month for a 6 year/125,000 mile warranty with a $100 deductible seems reasonable to me.